Registration

Registration is the day of the event, we do not have a pre-registration. This is unusual for this type event but its worked for 30 years! You will register on September 9 – please bring your pledges and we will confirm your pledge amount, and give you a swim cap, number and t-shirt.

The Swim is set for Saturday, September 9, 2017. Swimmer registration runs from 9-10:00am on the deck of the Boatslip Resort, 161 Commercial on Provincetown Harbor. The Swim begins at 10:30am at Long Point. Swimmers will be transported to Long Point from MacMillan Wharf via Ptown Trolley and Cape Cab’s Funkmobile beginning at 9:30am, and from Flyer’s Boat Rentals. The Swim across the harbor to the Boatslip is 1.4 miles.
Non-competitive and competitive swimmers are welcome.

Kayak and stand-up boarder registration is from 8:30am to 10am on the Boatslip Beach.

All swimmers, kayakers/boaters and volunteers receive free t-shirts (after swimmers receive their t-shirts, others will follow). All swimmers and kayakers who raise $1,000 in pledges will be eligible for prizes (we expect about $9- 10,000 worth of prizes from local businesses!).

Registration/logistics on Swim Day:

Arrive at the Boatslip and line up to register

While in line sign Liability Release Form given to you by a volunteer

Bring your pledge sheets and the total pledges collected: all checks, cash and totals from FirstGiving (PayPal no longer provides an option to pledge an individual swimmer!). We will have these totals as of Thursday, September 7)

At registration you will receive a ribbon, a coupon for a 2017 t-shirt, a transportation assignment and a numbered swim cap

Proceed to the person numbering your arm or leg

Proceed to the t-shirt table for your free t-shirt

Proceed to the clothes check (if you bring a sweatshirt/jacket to Long Point bring a bag with your number and we will take it back to the clothes check)

NO VASELINE UNTIL YOU ARE ON LONG POINT. IT’S A SERIOUS PROBLEM FOR THE TROLLEY AND BOATS.

Quickly prepare to depart for Long Point with your assigned transport: on the trolley to MacMillan Wharf, from the beach or from Flyer’s Boat Rental

Enjoy the ride across the harbor

Please allow experienced and competitive swimmers to the front for the start. Remember, this is not a race. Thanks!

Asking for money can be more of a challenge than the harbor Swim itself! Our minimum pledge of $100 has not changed since 1988, making the event as inclusive as possible, a hallmark of the Swim. We do encourage creative fundraising, check out our Fundraising Tips page. Please do not send pledges to us in advance, bring them with you when you register on Swim day.

Collecting pledges:

1. Check + Cash: No fee. The traditional way and it costs the Swim no service charge.

2. FirstGiving: We have been pleased with this and how easy it is for swimmers to raise pledges. Also, over 50% of those who pledge pay the FirstGiving charge, lowering their fee (credit card charge is a standard 2.5%). FirstGiving fee, 7.5%). Participants may set up a personal online donation page with stories, photos, etc. and collect pledges through the site. Many swimmers exceed their goal because of easy online access for individual pledges. Please bring a printout of your total when you register.

TO SET UP A TEAM THROUGH FIRSTGIVING: To register as a team, you’ll each have individual pages, and you’ll also have a team page grouping them together. You’ll each have to sign up as individuals separately. The first person will sign up and also CREATE the new team, and the other people will sign up and just JOIN that team.

Here are the steps:
Go to http://www.firstgiving.com/TheCompactSwim4Life/2017
Click the Green JOIN NOW button
Select Swimmer or Paddler
Log in to your FirstGiving account.
Select I WANT TO CREATE MY OWN TEAM and click NEXT
Enter the details for your TEAM PAGE
Check the waiver box and click NEXT
Create your PERSONAL fundraising page
The other folks on the team will do the same thing but instead of creating a new team they will just select to JOIN a team and search for the team you’ve created.

3. Unfortunately, PayPal IS NO LONGER AN OPTION BECAUSE THEY ELIMINATED THE ABILITY TO PLEDGE AN INDIVIDUAL SWIMMER. General donations may still be made.

Thanks for your successful fundraising efforts. Let us know what works for you. We are grateful.